About the American Medical Association (AMA)

Since 1847 the American Medical Association (AMA) has had one mission: to promote the art and science of
medicine and the betterment of public health. Today, the core strategy used to carry out this mission is our
concerted effort to help doctors help patients. We do this by uniting physicians nationwide to work on the most
important professional and public health issues.

In 2010 thier strategic plan focuses on five areas that encompass the central elements in health system reform:

• Access to care
• Quality of care
• Cost of health care
• Prevention and wellness
• Payment models

These topics represent the major areas of emphasis in which the AMA carries out its mission in the current
environment. Our proposed actions are not only directed at solving reform issues at the policy level, but also at
helping physicians adapt to—and adopt—changes in a productive way.

PREAMBLE
The American Marketing Association commits itself to promoting the highest standard of professional
ethical norms and values for its members (practitioners, academics and students). Norms are
established standards of conduct that are expected and maintained by society and/or professional
organizations. Values represent the collective conception of what communities find desirable, important
and morally proper. Values also serve as the criteria for evaluating our own personal actions and the
actions of others. As marketers, they recognize that we not only serve our organizations but also act as
stewards of society in creating, facilitating and executing the transactions that are part of the greater
economy. In this role, marketers are expected to embrace the highest professional ethical norms and the
ethical values implied by our responsibility toward multiple stakeholders (e.g., customers, employees,
investors, peers, channel members, regulators and the host community).

ETHICAL NORMS

As Marketers, they must:

1. Do no harm. This means consciously avoiding harmful actions or omissions by embodying high
ethical standards and adhering to all applicable laws and regulations in the choices we make.
2. Foster trust in the marketing system. This means striving for good faith and fair dealing so as to
contribute toward the efficacy of the exchange process as well as avoiding deception in product
design, pricing, communication, and delivery of distribution.
3. Embrace ethical values. This means building relationships and enhancing consumer confidence
in the integrity of marketing by affirming these core values: honesty, responsibility, fairness,
respect, transparency and citizenship.

ETHICAL VALUES
Honesty – to be forthright in dealings with customers and stakeholders. To this end, we will:

• Strive to be truthful in all situations and at all times.

• Offer products of value that do what we claim in our communications.
• Stand behind our products if they fail to deliver their claimed benefits.
 • Honor our explicit and implicit commitments and promises.

Responsibility – to accept the consequences of our marketing decisions and strategies. To this end, we will:

• Strive to serve the needs of customers.

• Avoid using coercion with all stakeholders.
• Acknowledge the social obligations to stakeholders that come with increased marketing and economic
power.
• Recognize our special commitments to vulnerable market segments such as children, seniors, the
economically impoverished, market illiterates and others who may be substantially disadvantaged.
• Consider environmental stewardship in our decision-making.

Fairness – to balance justly the needs of the buyer with the interests of the seller. To this end, we will:

• Represent products in a clear way in selling, advertising and other forms of communication; this includes
the avoidance of false, misleading and deceptive promotion.
• Reject manipulations and sales tactics that harm customer trust.
Refuse to engage in price fixing, predatory pricing, price gouging or “bait-and-switch” tactics.
• Avoid knowing participation in conflicts of interest.
Seek to protect the private information of customers, employees and partners.

Respect – to acknowledge the basic human dignity of all stakeholders. To this end, we will:

• Value individual differences and avoid stereotyping customers or depicting demographic groups (e.g.,
gender, race, sexual orientation) in a negative or dehumanizing way.
• Listen to the needs of customers and make all reasonable efforts to monitor and improve their satisfaction
on an ongoing basis.
• Make every effort to understand and respectfully treat buyers, suppliers, intermediaries and distributors
from all cultures.
• Acknowledge the contributions of others, such as consultants, employees and coworkers, to marketing
endeavors.
• Treat everyone, including our competitors, as we would wish to be treated.

Transparency – to create a spirit of openness in marketing operations. To this end, we will:

• Strive to communicate clearly with all constituencies.

• Accept constructive criticism from customers and other stakeholders.
• Explain and take appropriate action regarding significant product or service risks, component substitutions
or other foreseeable eventualities that could affect customers or their perception of the purchase decision.
• Disclose list prices and terms of financing as well as available price deals and adjustments.

Citizenship – to fulfill the economic, legal, philanthropic and societal responsibilities that serve stakeholders. To
this end, we will:

• Strive to protect the ecological environment in the execution of marketing campaigns.

• Give back to the community through volunteerism and charitable donations.
Contribute to the overall betterment of marketing and its reputation.
• Urge supply chain members to ensure that trade is fair for all participants, including producers in developing
countries.
IMPLEMENTATION
We expect AMA members to be courageous and proactive in leading and/or aiding their organizations in the
fulfillment of the explicit and implicit promises made to those stakeholders. We recognize that every industry sector
and marketing sub-discipline (e.g., marketing research, e-commerce, Internet selling, direct marketing, and
advertising) has its own specific ethical issues that require policies and commentary. An array of such codes can be
accessed through links on the AMA Web site. Consistent with the principle of subsidiarity (solving issues at the
level where the expertise resides), we encourage all such groups to develop and/or refine their industry and
discipline-specific codes of ethics to supplement these guiding ethical norms and values.

History of the American Marketing Association

The roots of the American Marketing Association can be traced to the early 1900’s when the National Association
of Teachers of Advertisers and American Marketing Society, comprised of marketers and marketing researchers,
merged to bring together all marketers, across all specialties to collaborate and inspire one another.

Read more about the history of AMA below:

2010 Milestones

• Over 5,000 marketers from all over the world attended AMA’s first virtual event, Cracking the Code for
Business Marketers, featuring B2B social marketing strategies such as utilizing social media tactics for lead
generations, leveraging social media as an engagement strategy, measuring ROI of a social media program.
• AMA welcomed two new chapters--the 75th professional chapter Jacksonville and the 76th professional
chapter Southwest Michigan.

2009 Milestones

• AMA with strategic partners Bain & Company, The Wharton School and the Institute for the Study of
Business Markets hosted Mplanet 2009 an industry-leading event for the world’s most influential marketing
leaders and academics to share new ideas, innovations and proven strategies in today’s challenging
marketing environment. The event explored the techno-driven, borderless world, which created new
challenges for marketers. Featured speakers included: Anne Mulchay, Chairman and CEO, Xerox
Corporation; R.K. Krishna Kumar, Chairman, Tata Coffee Ltd. Vice Chairman, Tata Tea and Indian Hotels,
Tata Sons Ltd.; Mary Dillion, EVP and Global CMO, McDonald’s and John Hayes, CMO, American
Express.
• Marketing News expands the publication editorial to feature special sections and articles on U.S. and
international marketing, digital marketing, Back-to-School issue and also Marketing News presented the
first podcast series.

2008 Milestones

• AMA and AMA Foundation launch the Nonprofit Marketer of the Year award
• AMA relaunches marketingpower.com, creating a more robust content and resource tool for marketers

2007 Milestones

• Marketing News undergoes a redesign - receiving a modern look and feel as well as a new content structure
• AMA announces Journal of Marketing and Journal of Marketing Research will increase from 4 to 6 issues in 2008
• AMA announces Mplanet™ event to be held January 26-29, 2009 at the Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando, Florida